This invention relates to removing hair from hides, skins, pelts and whole carcasses. In general, the compositions and methods of the present invention are useful in dehairing animal carcasses where the hide is either removed or remains on the carcass and in particular is useful in dehairing hog carcasses, including carcasses containing so-called hard hair. This invention also relates to denuding poultry.
Currently, hair removal from whole carcasses has conventionally been accomplished by the use of large scald tanks, typically having upwards of 20,000 gallons capacity. The carcass is immersed into the tank for a short period of time, typically about 3-7 minutes in a water based solution of various chemicals at about 136.degree. F. to 140.degree. F., primarily to loosen the hair on the hide of the carcass. The carcass is then moved into a dehairing machine or defeathering machine where the hide is mechanically abraded to remove the loosened hair scurf or feathers. In some cases, where these procedures do not completely remove the unwanted hair, particularly in the case of so-called hard hair, the remaining hair is manually singed away and shaved before the carcass is further prepared for subsequent processing.
Hard hair sometimes requires special treatment. The so-called hard hair season is generally encountered in carcasses obtained from July to about December, depending on the section of the country. The hair on the carcass at that time is resistant to removal by the previously described conventional scald tank procedure. At the present time, there are no commercially available government approved formulations that can be employed in the scald tank to effectively remove hard hair. Under these circumstances the carcass will be singed and shaved.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide a chemical composition which will effectively loosen and remove hair or feathers from whole carcasses, skins, pelts and hides regardless of the characteristics encountered, which is employed either as a foam, spray or bath.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a chemical composition which is capable of being applied as a foam to the carcass, skin, hide or pelt to loosen and remove hair which composition can be rinsed off thereby obviating the need for expensive scald tanks.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a chemical composition from which it is possible to recover feed grade protein during rendering from hair or feathers which have been removed according to this invention or otherwise.